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Last weekend I and 50,000 or so other people boarded ferries, hovercraft or other conveyances and set sail for the Isle of Wight, wherein Rob Da Bank's eclectic music-nerd-fest Bestival was in full swing despite reports of possible unsettled weather on the way. This did not deter me nor the other punters, who bravely incorporated wellies into their obligatory fancy dress costumes and sallied forth. Speaking for myself it was a grand time – although I didn't see that many "checklist" bands, the sheer quality of music that pervaded every nook and cranny (and Drambuie bar) of the Bestival site meant that it was one continuous potpourri of fantastic music all weekend.

I was happy to see one of my photos from the recent Notting Hill Carnival featured on Gadling.com’s “Picture of the Day“.

Photo of the day (9.2.10)

Each year around American Labor Day, the elaborate costumes and street partying associated with pre-Lenten Mardi Gras or Carnival celebrations are taken outside in several cities too cold to parade in February. Brooklyn’s West Indian Day Parade is one of the largest in the world, drawing several million spectators, with a population of local West Indian residents to rival that of the Caribbean. This photo by Flickr user Luke Robinson taken at West London’s Notting Hill Carnival in England (the largest street festival in Europe) captures a father and son who look like they’ve enjoyed the revelry but might be ready to call it a day. With 20 miles of parading, music, and food to cover, it’s no wonder the little boy looks a bit tuckered out. I just hope that’s not a vuvuzela he’s carrying. Other Caribbean Carnival events take place throughout the US, Canada, and UK this fall.

This year we once again walked down from our homes in West London and converged upon the riot of colour, sound, taste, and smells (mainly jerk chicken and spliff) of the Notting Hill Carnival. I love Carnival for the experience and the shooting, and I have learned over the years how best to approach it so as to avoid hassle – basically, I stay around the edge of the route and don’t go into big crowds if I can help it.

Day 1: Sunday August 29th (Children’s Day)

We approached Carnival on Sunday with a mixture of excitement (at the return of Carnival) and trepidation (at the gloomy weather). The weather was mostly cooperative, except for a quite fierce shower that hit in early afternoon. But overall it was not as cold as we had expected and we even managed to get a bit of sunshine here and there. We managed to get into Good Times in the afternoon only by running the extremely-crowded gauntlet of Sancho Panza. Not sure I need to do that again!

Day 2: Monday August 30th (Main Day)

Today there were just two of us walking down from Maida Vale, slightly dazed from a post-Carnival pub session the night before, and we were after a low-key, chilled Carnival experience that was highly dependent on zero hassle. So we basically stayed on the canal edge up by the Trellick Tower and drifted around. But what a day! The sunshine was out in full force and it actually felt like summer. This meant that all the dancers and all of the crowd up this way had giant smiles plastered all over their painted faces, and the Vibe was Good. We hung out by the parade route for some time as the Burrokeet crew stalled out in front of us, and I took the opportunity to get a few closeups of the mas dancers and the crowd. The Burrokeet MC also donated some free beer to us, which I thought was kind.